I located a cam for my 325 hemi. All I see on the cam stamped on the front is 050 and one end right before the first lobe is 2.7 sideways. The box it came in says FRE-3-HF on the side. The cam looks NOS but I don't know. The cam that came with my engine has 4 lobes rounded off but the numbers between the lobes were legible and I was able to verify it in my yellow data book as tall block Dodge. Does anyone know who manufactured or ground this cam?
I would check that cam out very closely before proceeding. Someone ID'd it as DeSoto/Dodge but there is a difference in length between the two. Also, it says 270-315-325 all of which are Dodge hemis, not DeSoto. If the length matches your original cam I would next consider that a 241/270 block has a shorter deck height than the tall deck 315/325 engines. If the length measures correctly and it is a Dodge cam you can check it in your block by degreeing the no. 1 cylinder and then checking no. 6. If the timing events do not match on both cylinders then that cam is for the short deck block, the lifter bores are on different angles to compensate for the difference in deck height and it will not run correctly.
Ty Dodger,Fordor. I wont be getting to this engine soon. I'm only getting parts together for the 325 now. The cams do look the same except for the rounded off lobes. The 331 needs some attention first so hopefully it will be running in the 31 coupe by fall.
From 73rr - Sadly, we have very little to ID a cam with. The Desoto's are better/easier than the others when the numbers are legible, and the 392 has a particular machine mark (oem only) but the others are tough. Occasionally, we see a cam with good legible numbers but not often. The only way to confirm what you have is to sit it next to the old piece and verify physical dimensions and lobe arrangement. As mentioned by Fordors, the low deck and tall deck cams, while physically interchangeable, will have slightly different valve timing events and you would not like the results if swapped around. I'd suggest sitting the two cams side by each and take a hard look at the lobe placement comparing one to the other. The difference will be subtle but, if different, will be visible. Look especially at lobes 13 and 14 as these tend to show the biggest variance. You can also sight down the length of the cams, with various lobes 'up', and compare lobe placement between the two. Sometimes the lobe placement (overlap or spread) will be more visible.
This question pops up at regular intervals. Here are some random thoughts. Cam lobes can be welded up and re-ground but cost must be considered and compared to a replacement core (if available). We charge $20 per lobe to repair. If all of the lobes are in the same group then warpage is a concern. I have a couple of subject cores and took a quick look....as with the Chryslers, the best indicator of low deck vs tall deck will be lobes 13-14. The low deck lobes are spread farther apart than the tall deck cam. The tall deck cam lobes are nearly in alignment. The cores that I have are marked, no surprise here, with different number/letters than what the OP has noted. It is certainly easy to ID the 55 and older cams simply by the long nose but, the 56-260 and 56-270 Poly are low deck engines with a short nose cam. These are often sought by folks building 241. Gary .
I am very happy to say Gary 73rr took care of me after the bad experience I had with competion cams. Thanks Gary
The attached photo shows the good cam being ground to reduce the 'core' diameter and provide additional margin at the base of the lobe.
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